On that fateful night
by Bubbly Washing Machine
Summary: It's the end of semester school dance, and Marinette, or Ladybug, has just begun to feel like maybe... she's over Adrien. And Adrien, or Chat Noir, is starting to feel like maybe... he's over Ladybug. And on that fateful night, under the hazy fog of a cheap smoke machine, some things will come into the light.
1. Chapter 1

Marinette shyly tiptoed through the room, trying to make as little sound as possible. Around her, teenagers laughed, dancing and drank soda, whirling around the hazy dancefloor in dizzying shows of bright light and colour as the loud pop music played, but she was feeling a little self-conscious in the dress she had made herself.

Someone tapped her on the shoulder. She spun around, fearing an akuma, or worse: Chloe, but came face to face with the Ladyblogger herself. Alya smiled.

"Girl, you look fabulous! Adrien will totally…"

Marinette tuned out. Adrien, Adrien, Adrien, that was all she ever thought about, wasn't it? What was so great about him anyway? He was just a boy, after all. Marinette turned her thoughts to a different blond-haired, green-eyed boy.

...

 _Ladybug ducked behind a building, barely escaping the akuma's clutches. She backed away quickly, and tripped on something behind her. She let out a shout of fear as her world tilted backwards._

 _Strong arms were suddenly holding her up. "Relax, my Lady. It's just me. You tripped on my foot."_

 _Ladybug sighed and gently pulled herself away. She turned to face her partner, grinned, and leaned in close to the boy._

 _"Well, I guess I'm just falling for you, Chat."_

 _..._

"Mari? Are you even listening?" Alya clicked her fingers in front of Marinette's face.

"Oh sorry! Please continue." She waved her arms.

"I bet I know what you were thinking about, hmmm?" Alya nudged Marinette's arm and nodded to her left. Marinette turned subtly around.

Adrien stood there, laughing with Nino about something. Marinette waited for the familiar rush of emotions, the blushing, the stuttering, but it… never came. What a relief! She grabbed Alya's arm.

"Let's go say hi!"

Alya gasped in shock. "Mari? Whaaaat? Who is this? And what have you done with my friend?" Marinette just pulled her over.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi everyone! I just wanted to let you know that even though each of these chapters will be pretty short, because I'm kind of busy, I going to try and update fairly regularly. Thanks for the support,**

 **Bubbly**

* * *

Adrien yawned. It had been a long day, with photo shoots in the morning, fencing at midday, Chinese in the afternoon, and he had to skip piano to get ready for the dance. Nino said something dumb and laughed, so he laughed as well, but his eyes wandered around the foggy, lit-up room.

There was Chloe, in an expensive yet somehow disgusting yellow dress, and Sabrina, in a less-expensive rip-off of the same thing. There was all his other classmates, like Rose and Juleka, who were dancing shyly. Adrien smiled. Those two really were perfect for each other.

"And I mean, I asked her, what is it about her that's so great? And you should have seen her face, man. 'Oh my god, Nino. Oh my god. Ladybug is the greatest hero of our time. She is strong and brave and BLAH BLAH BLAH.' I swear, she loves Ladybug more than she loves me."

Adrien nodded sincerely in response to Nino's rant, but his mind was elsewhere.

Huh. Ladybug. What was it about her? Her eyes? There were plenty of girls with eyes like hers. Her strong and brave nature? There were many girls who'd stand up for what they believed in like she did. Adrien remembered a time not so long ago when he was completely obsessed with the red-and-black superhero. But lately, he'd been focusing on a different bluenette...

...

 _"Just because Chat Noir is Ladybug's partner, he's still, like, a mangy alley cat! He's always getting in the way or being used against her. Ladybug would totally be fine without him. If I were her, I'd ditch him and find a better, cooler partner."_

 _Marinette stopped walking and turned to face Chloe. Her face was flushed and she looked angry. Really angry._

 _"Ladybug and Chat Noir are a TEAM. They need each other, Chloe, and actually work better when they know the other's got their back. Ladybug would have failed several times if it wasn't for Chat Noir, which is something I would have thought YOU would know, being such a FAN and all. Maybe you should get your facts straight before sprouting your opinion to all of us, who are SICK of putting up with your petty insults and complaints."_

 _Chloe was lost for words. The room was silent, before Adrien started clapping and whistling, and suddenly the entire class was there, cheering for Marinette._

...

Suddenly Nino was shouting over the music and Alya was tugging him over to the dance floor. They were giggling and singing along to the cheesy pop song playing. He realised Marinette was standing next to him, watching the two and smiling.

Adrien looked over at her.

Marinette had on this gorgeous pink dress that went to her knees and complimented her pink cheeks and blue-black hair perfectly (which was out of its usual pigtails and instead falling around her shoulders, not that he was looking or anything). She noticed him watching and grinned softly, almost shyly, but… something was different. She wasn't acting nervous or jittery at all. She seemed as strong and brave as she had the other day when standing up to Chloe, though less angry. In fact, her newfound confidence reminded him of a certain heroine, and Adrien felt his cheeks heat up as he stuttered to find something to say… anything… but nothing was coming.


	3. Chapter 3

Marinette tucked her hair behind her ear and said, "Hey Adrien," for the third time. Adrien was acting strange, and even though he was no longer her crush, she was worried about his mental health. He had been standing there, in silence, for quite some time now.

"Adrien? Are you okay?"

Adrien blinked and opened his mouth. A few seconds later he closed it again.

"Adrien?!" Marinette waved her hands in front of his face. He was starting to really freak her out.

"Oh Mari! Sorry, I, I, I spaced out there, huh, huh yeah sorry, what were you saying?!" He said quickly, rubbing the back of his head and smiling sheepishly. Marinette raised an eyebrow, but decided he was just tired.

"I was just saying hi?"

"Oh, right, well, you to hi too! I mean, you hi too! I mean…"

Marinette started planning escape routes. Backing away slowly, she said, "Well, this has been fun, but wow would you look at the time -"

Adrien's eyes widened.

"No, wait!"

Marinette waited.

"I… I… We should dance!"

Well, this certainly was unexpected. She looked around for Alya, but she was nowhere to be seen. Marinette sighed inwardly. Up until recently, she would have killed to dance with Adrien. But just as soon as she got over him, he made a move? She resolved herself to make it clear that she was (no longer) interested. But his face was so…

"I get it if you don't want to, I mean, heaps of people would probably want to dance with you, why wouldn't they, um, so what I'm trying to say is... did you design that dress yourself?" Adrien stuttered.

"Oh! Yes, I just finished the lining this morning." Marinette said, relieved to be back on a topic she could confidently handle.

"It's lovely. It could absolutely pass as part of one of my father's lines."

"Why thank you! That has got to be the highest compliment you could give me!"

"I'm sure I could do better," Adrien said, looking deep into Marinette's bluebell eyes.

Marinette blushed in surprise. This was getting way too mushy for her taste! That said, that comment did remind her of something Chat Noir might say. Which meant that she must have a weakness for it...


	4. Chapter 4

Adrien was dancing with Marinette! Yes! He internally high-fived himself. She hesitantly put her arms around him and Adrien watched as Chloe slowly went from light pink to a bright red when she noticed the dancing couple.

Well. They weren't a couple. But still.

Adrien felt his heart flutter. Could they be a couple? He supposed that there were two of them, and the collective term for two people is a couple, or would they be a duo? Or a partnership, perhaps a pair? A duet? A twosome?

Max, who, much to Nino's bafflement and supressed envy, had been asked to program the music for that evening, saw Adrien and Marinette dancing and faded out the song. A slow, romantic song started playing, and all the couples of their year took to the dance floor. Those who were single backed away sadly and hung around the edges, watching bitterly.

Alix challenged Kim to a dance, Rose took Juleka's hand and led her to the floor without even asking, Alya and Nino spun and twirled merrily, Ivan and Mylène held each other sweetly, and Chloe stood in the corner, staring at Adrien and Marinette with a sour, unattractive look on her face while Sabrina looked out longingly.

"Marinette?"

"Yes?"

"You're standing on my toes."

The bluenette jumped back, tripping over her own feet in the process. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"

Adrien laughed and waved away her apology. She was so cute. "Don't worry about it Mari, really, I'm sure my toes can handle it. They've taken worse!"

"Really?"

"Oh yeah, being thrown off the Eiffel Tower every few days builds up a certain resistance to these sorts of things. This sort of things. Those sorts of thing. Ah!?"

Marinette smiled and said, "I think I know what you mean."

Adrien no longer trusted himself to speak. "Uh huh."

A comfortable silence ensued. Adrien tightened his hold on her ever-so-slightly when he caught some other girls watching jealously.

"… Wait… THROWN OFF THE EIFFEL TOWER?!" Marinette exclaimed with some alarm. Adrien looked frantically around to see if anyone heard her.

"Shhhh, I mean, ah, did I say the Eiffel Tower? I meant… Tripping on the… tiles… in my shower?" She didn't look convinced.

"It's a long story?" He offered weakly.


	5. Chapter 5

They danced quietly, each content to just be in the company of the other. Outwardly, at least.

Marinette was concerned.

Adrien was acting very strange. He was almost acting like she used to around him, stuttering and blushing, the works! Did that mean…

She laughed softly. Too late, Adrien. Missed your chance.

She let her mind wander back to their conversation, thinking over the comfortable way they could interact now that Marinette was able to string together coherent sentences like an actual human being.

Wait. WAIT.

"Thrown off the Eiffel Tower?!" Marinette cried out. Her mind screamed at her. Adrien gets thrown off the Eiffel Tower on a regular basis? Huh? This? What does that mean? What the actual f–

Adrien, stuttering and malfuntioning, said something dumb, something about tripping on tiles that was CLEARLY false and CLEARLY trying to cover up the fact that he JUST BASICALLY SAID THAT HE WAS IN MORTAL DANGER EVERY FEW DAYS AND OH GOODNESS MARINETTE WAS GOING TO CRY WHAT WAS GOING ON

"It's a long story?"

Marinette knew she was panicking. Tapping into her inner Tikki, she took a few deep breaths to calm herself down, making sure she was thinking clearly before answering. Maybe he really does trip on his shower tiles every day. Who knows? From her time as Ladybug she's discovered that he takes _a lot_ of showers.

"Please, explain." She said. Alya was waving at her from across the room. She chose to ignore her.

"Heh, I'm just acting really weird aren't I? Anyway, I, uh, sometimes can be really clumsy, a bit like you Marinette!" Adrien said brightly, rubbing the back of his neck.

Marinette nodded. This made sense. She obviously overreacted. It'd be easy to mix up shower and tower, they did rhyme after all. And Adrien had been acting... off... the whole night, so it would make sense for him to stuff up another sentence.

But then, as they were dancing, and the song changed, she couldn't help but think of someone she knew who had bright green eyes, scruffy blond hair, a tendency to get thrown off the Eiffel Tower, and strong arms like the ones holding her right now.

...

 _Ladybug watched in horror as Chat Noir was tossed across the platform, through the air and almost to the street below like a doll. He barely managed to grab onto the edge of the tower to prevent himself from falling. The akuma, who was proving to be one of the most problematic yet, was ruthlessly beating her kitty into the ground and she'd be damned if there was nothing she could do about it!_

 _She took a running start before launching herself into the air, using her yo-yo to propel her light frame in a straight line, leading her directly to the villian itself._

 _A violent battle ensued._

 _And she won, as always, releasing the little white butterfly with a wave. She then used her Miraculous Cure to fix everything, and they swarmed over Chat Noir's crumpled body in a flash of pink light. He blinked up at her._

 _"My... Lady?"_

 _"Yes, it's me. Who else would it be?" She laughed, tears running down her face._

 _"I can sometimes be really clumsy, can't I?" He said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck._

 _She kissed him on the cheek instead of answering. Chat blushed._

 _"Did we win?" He asked, sitting up._

 _"Yeah, kitty, we did."_

 _..._

It couldn't be... Could it?

 _Well, only one way to find out._

* * *

 ** _Heh, almost lost inspiration there. But it's fine, everyone, I got this story under control!_**

 ** _I would love it if people told me their thoughts on the story and what they think I could do better/improve/elaborate/work on, though it is not yet finished, so I could improve as a writer (and make the ending satisfactory!)._**

 ** _\- Bubbly_**


	6. Chapter 6

Adrien cursed inwardly. How could he have let that slip out? For all he knew, Marinette now knew he was Chat Noir! She would tell Alya! His secret would be out! Ladybug would shun him, his family… well, who cares about his family, but where would he go? He'd have to live on the streets, eating fish out of bins and begging on doorsteps for Camembert to feed Plagg so that he could transform into Chat Noir and perform magic tricks for little kids, which would be his only hobby. Hawkmoth would most likely kidnap him, use him as bait to get Ladybug, then beat her using an army of akumafied villains and then take both their Miraculous jewels! And be UNSTOPPABLE!

Ahem. Anyway. He tried to cover up his deep and bottomless anxiety caused by years of neglect, loss, rejection, sadness and a loveless environment by smiling shyly at Marinette. The girl seemed pretty anxious herself. She was chewing on her bottom lip. It was adorable. Adrien allowed himself to appreciate that for a moment.

Alya was just suddenly there, out of nowhere.

"Heeeeey guys! You two look like you're getting along really well…" She said, giving Marinette a not-so-subtle elbow dig. Marinette gave a false smile and said; "Yeeah!" Alya looked confused but soon left, saying she was going to get a drink. Marinette rolled her eyes once she was gone.

"So," she said, turning to him, "Adrien."

Gulp. "Yes, Marinette?"

"Uhm... What do you think of Ladybug?"

Huh? "Oh she's - she's great."

"Yeah?"

"Oh yeah, I think she's just wonderful."

Marinette nodded thoughtfully. "Alright."

Adrien was sweating. The music was hurting his was turned up too loud. Around him, classmates were dancing, but he was beginning to see it as more of a violent pushing and shoving contest.

"I... I have to get some fresh air."

...

Adrien was feeling a little better. The cool air outside was refreshing against his face, and it was easier for him to relax. Plagg patted his shoulder comfortingly, which was rare. It was good to know the kwami had his back, even if he didn't show it often.

All of a sudden someone sat down beside him. Plagg zipped out of sight.

It was... Ladybug?! No. Heh. That midnight-blue hair though...

"You feeling a little better yet, Adrien?" Marinette said quietly. All thoughts of Ladybug vanished. God, she was so nice!

"Ah, yeah, I'm feeling much better now, thanks." He answered.

"I'm glad to hear that. Adrien, there's something I need to -"

"There you two are! I've been looking all over for you guys!" Alya said, happily sitting down beside Marinette.

Marinette took a deep breath and stood up. "Actually, I think I'm going to get a drink."

"Wait! What were you going to tell me?!" Adrien said quickly. Alya's eyes widened and she hastily rose to stop Marinette from leaving. She shoved the bluenette back toward him. And then she left, mumbling something about 'stupid children'.

The force of Alya's shove propelled Marinette toward Adrien and toward the edge of the stairs he was sitting on. Panicked, Adrien stood up and reached out, worried that Marinette was going to trip and fall. And she did, of course, trip on her shoes and stumble over the lip of the stairs-

Into Adrien's arms.

She looked up at him. He wrapped his arms around her tighter. A few seconds passed.

"Mari, you okay?"

She pulled away gently.

"Oh, I'm fine mon chaton. But..."

She leaned in very close to his face.

"I think I fell for you."

Adrien fainted.

* * *

 **THE END! BYE!**

 **In case it was hard to tell, in the end Adrien fainting was because maybe he realised who she was and he was like 'holy mother of all that is holy' and just passed out from shock.**


End file.
